Statement: The California Values Act Protects Us All

Media Contact

The following is a statement from the ACLU Foundations of California on the White House meeting today with foes of the California Values Act. Please attribute to Maria Romani, Immigrants’ Rights Policy Attorney for the ACLU Foundations of California.

"By meeting with President Trump today, a small group of California officials have made their views clear: they care more about serving the Trump Administration’s anti-immigrant agenda, and aligning with designated hate groups like FAIR, than they do about serving their constituents.

The federal government has a divisive and hateful agenda — but here in California, we stick together and we stand up for each other. Immigrants are a vital part of California's heart and soul. They are our friends, our neighbors, our coworkers, and members of our families.

The California Values Act is about fairness, equality, and keeping families together. Our communities are safer and stronger when they are whole. California is fully within its rights to limit the use of our local resources to fuel Trump's deportation machine, which routinely flouts constitutional rights and tears families apart. Here in California, we treat our people fairly, no matter their background or where they were born."